


She Sells Seashells

by AriesAscending



Series: Monster Summer Mash [7]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Ambiguous Relationships, And lots of playing, Aster is adorable, Beach Trope, Bonding, Cuddling & Snuggling, Day At The Beach, F/M, Fluff, G is adorable, Gen, M/M, Multi, Road Trip Trio, SO MUCH FLUFF, Seashells, Seaside, Smooth boys, Stargazing, Stupid tongue twister, The bros have never seen the ocean, We're all adorable, You want a camera, You're All Nerds, because that's my jam, kind of, lots of banter, nerds, playful banter, the ocean, you all really love each other, you're adorable
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-03
Updated: 2018-08-03
Packaged: 2019-06-21 09:44:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15554982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AriesAscending/pseuds/AriesAscending
Summary: You think it's a crime that the boys have never seen the ocean, so you take them out for a day on the beach. You do not regret it.





	She Sells Seashells

**Author's Note:**

> I'm pretty sure this is my longest story out of all the others lol. I really loved this one, so I hope everyone else does as well!

There was something absolutely beautiful about being the one to introduce the brothers to the ocean for the first time.

You'd all been crowded into the little couch in your RV, watching a movie on a small, portable movie player. The main characters were trekking up a beach they'd just been stranded on, soaking water, when G spoke up, sounding slightly suspicious. “Hold up a sec, is that actually what the beach looks like?” 

You looked up, not bothering to pause the movie, to give him an incredulous glance. “What do you mean, “is that what the beach looks like”? Don't tell me you've never seen the ocean.”

Blank stares. A nervous glance between the two. Mounting horror at their continued silence. “Oh my God, you've never been to the beach!” 

Well, that just won't do. You scramble up from your spot between them, chucking the movie player backwards carelessly. You hear G and Aster make startled noises as they scramble to salvage it, but you're too busy pulling up a map on your phone to notice. “My dear, what are you doing?” Aster calls.

“This is an outrage. It's a crime against-” You pause, having been about to say “humanity”, and correct yourself. “It's crazy to think that you guys have never been to the ocean, and since we're on this little road trip to explore the world, it's only fair that you get to see it.” You speak even as you type, completely set on finding the nearest- “Aha! Knew there was a beach somewhere around here! Ooh, nice, it's only an hour away!” 

“You're serious about this,” G says, not quite a question, watching as you dart past the two on your way to the driver's seat.

“Uh, duh, bonehead,” you tease, pausing to face them with a grin. “ If you're gonna be stuck with me for who knows how long, you might as well enjoy yourselves and see new things, right? And besides…” Your expression gets a little softer, a slight frown on your lips. “It's totally not fair that you guys got stuck under a mountain without an ocean to visit, and now that you're up here you've gotta fight tooth and claw to go anywhere. I'm gonna do my best to make sure you see everything you want to.”

Both skeletons are silent in the aftermath of your determined rant, staring at you with a mix of expressions ranging from surprise to amusement to something like awe. Flushing, you duck your head. “Erm… sorry about that, I get a little, uh,  _ heated  _ when it comes to, you know, people being treated fairly, and all… Especially when I, um, y’know… care about them…” You all but whisper the last part, realizing you're just digging yourself deeper.

Aster chuckles slightly at your flustered countenance. He reaches out, gently setting his hand on your shoulder. “Thank you for your indignation on our behalf, my dear. While we have no qualms about where we do or do not go-or  _ cannot _ go, as the case is to be occasionally-I know I speak for the both of us when I say that we appreciate your willingness to take us somewhere new. And…” He gives you a look that you think might be a smug smirk, and you really don't know how to deal with that. “You're quite endearing when you're passionate and flustered about something.” 

Oh hey, look, there goes your pulse, straight through the roof. You whirl away from him, hiding your rapidly-reddening face. “Right! Yes! Okay! Time to get this show on the road, yep,  _ way _ past time, I'm just gonna- I'm just gonna go up this way now goodbye-” You hastily abscond, pretending not to notice the two laughing skeletons behind you.

 

You pull up in a cute little seaside town roughly an hour later. You're careful to enter on a side that hides the ocean, not wanting to spoil the “grand reveal.” You do nothing to hide the smell of it though, rolling down the windows pointedly. When Aster-currently sitting in the passenger seat, acting as your faithful navigator-gives you a questioning look, you grin and instruct, “Take a nice, deep breath, friends. That’s what it smells like.”

Aster leans towards the window obligingly, sockets falling closed as he inhales deeply. You watch him from the corner of your eyes, carefully monitoring his expression. You feel a deep sense of satisfaction and content when you see a small smile cross his teeth, and when he turns to look at you with glittering eyesockets. You don’t think you’ve ever seen him look that excited about anything but books.

G climbs up in front, obnoxiously leaning over Aster to stick his torso out the window, hands perched on the sill. Aster protests, obviously, and your pulse skyrockets from the dangerous maneuver, but G’s got a firm grip on the window. You can hear him holler into the whipping wind, just barely able to make out his exclamations of joy. It takes a while, but he finally clambers back in, resting one hand on the back of your seat and leaning towards you as he speaks excitedly. “I can’t believe you’re really takin’ us there, Cricket. You’re the best. It smells  _ amazing  _ out there.”

Pride swelling in your chest, you grin up at him. “If you think that’s great, wait til you actually see it,  _ then  _ tell me how great I am.”

“Oh, I’ll be  _ shore  _ to tell you what I think once I  _ sea  _ it,” G drawls, winking at you in the mirror. You snort, unable to help yourself.

Aster has no such qualms. “G! Must you tell your terrible jokes  _ now  _ of all times? At least say something more original!”

“I’d like to see you make a better one, bro,” G challenges, though it’s uttered just as lazily as most of his statements.

“I  _ ashore  _ you, I will,” Aster replies, looking decidedly smug, and it takes a minute for the pun to register with the both of you. Once it does, you’re laughing helplessly, trying hard to maintain the steering wheel, while G claps him on the back wordlessly, seemingly punned into submission.

This continues the whole way through the town, the two of them exchanging increasingly elaborate and subtle puns that have you cracking up. It’s honestly a miracle you manage to get there in one piece, though not without casualty- your sides are aching by the time you slow to a stop on the cliffs overlooking the ocean. 

Before either of them can exit-which G attempts as you’re  _ still moving _ \- you have the two of them close their eyes so it’ll be a surprise. It’s a bit of a struggle leading two towering, excited skeletons off your RV and down the built-in set of stairs between the rise and the sand by the hand without dying, but you manage. You stop at the edge of the stairs and the sand to have them take off their shoes, and you giggle as they “ooh” and “ahh” over the strange new feeling. 

You give them a chance to play in it for a while, finding the way they kick about the sand curiously to be rather endearing. They comment on how strange is feels and how it’s no doubt getting in between their joints, but they don’t seem irritated by this-if anything, it only seems to excite them more. They ask you tons of questions about it, most of which you don’t have the answer to, so you promise to look it up with them later.

When the novelty has died down a little, you continue leading them across the sand. As you draw closer to the ocean, the roar growing in your ears, you feel two sets of holed hands squeeze yours tightly. You can feel the anticipation and the excitement in the grip, and you bite your lip to hold in your own excited noises. 

Carefully, slowly, you lead them onto the wet sand, and the waves roll in, washing coldly over your toes and their bones. Their sockets snap open.

_ I wish I had a camera. _

You’d left your phone up in the RV, not wanting to risk dropping it into the ocean, but now you wish you hadn’t. Because this moment, right here- their faces? Those were something that deserved to be remembered forever, so you settled on simply memorizing every detail.

It was incredibly moving to see the awed looks on their faces. They looked almost agonizingly amazed, like they couldn’t quite believe that they were actually standing here, the waves washing over them, the ocean spanning out for centuries. Their hands were shaking, the grip they held on your fingers so tight it almost hurt, but you didn’t mind. You wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Wow,” G finally managed, sounding a little choked. A grin was slowly growing on his face. “This is… wow. It’s really…. It’s really big, and it’s…” A breathy, delighted laugh. “It’s loud! And so, so big…”

“It goes on for miles,” Aster mused wonderingly, struck into the same trance his brother was. He stared down at his feet, watching the sand and water sift between his bones. Beneath the excitement you can see his curiosity, the natural scientist and detective in him seeking answers for the marvelous and unknown.

You shriek in surprise when G suddenly grabs you under your arms, lifting you out of the water and spinning you around as he laughs. You grab his arms, letting out a startled giggle as he swings you. The crashing waves against his calves throw off his balance slightly, and as the next wave rolls in he loses balance, stumbling backwards. You let out another startled noise as you fall, landing heavily against him in the water. 

For a moment the three of you stand in stunned silence, with you staring at a completely-soaked G, the cold seeping into your bones. The moment breaks with a sudden cackle, surprisingly not coming from either of you-no, it’s coming from Aster, who’s doubled over, an arm across his stomach as he laughs. It’s much louder and more boisterous than you’d ever expect from the normally quiet and reserved skeleton, punctuated by adorable little “nyeh” noises. 

Just like that, the dam breaks, and you and G join him, laughing heartily as the tide continues to soak you. It’s the first time you’ve heard either of them laugh this hard, and you find you can’t stop looking at the crinkle at the edge of their sockets, the little dimples in G’s cheeks when he smiles that wide and the way Aster’s face tints green the longer he laughs. 

It takes forever for the three of you to calm down, but once you do, Aster helps you up off of G and escorts you back to the RV to grab blankets and towels, along with a change of clothes. You help him carry everything back down to the beach to set up, while G has waded out further into the water, effectively soaked up to his ribs. When he sees you’ve returned, he calls for you to come join him, and after making sure everything’s straight, you do. 

And of course he splashes you as soon as you get close enough, and what ensues is probably the most intense splash war you’ve ever been a part of. Both skeletons are complete cheaters, both because they’re  _ so much taller than you  _ and also because  _ they use magic.  _ You’ve swallowed more salt water than is probably healthy, but you don’t care-you’re having too much fun to worry about that. 

Part way through, Aster decides to give you the advantage, swinging you up on his shoulders. Together, the two of you overpower G and manage to shove him underwater for a few seconds. Unfortunately, G uses Aster’s hunched position and your dangling limbs to pull you under with him, wrapping his arms around your waist. You beat against his arms, but he pulls you up and away from Aster, laughing loudly as his taller brother gives chase.

This goes on for a while, with the two of them occasionally splashing or taunting each other and trying to get you back. You’re laughing the whole while, splashing the opposing skeleton when they get too close. Your cheeks hurt from how much you’re smiling. 

Aster finally emerges the victor, scooping you up bridal style and trudging back to shore with you. G doesn’t bother to try and get you back, simply wading out after him to collapse on the towels. You consider joining him, but Aster speaks up shyly, still cradling you. “Cricket? If you wouldn’t mind, do you think… could we look for shells along the beach? I’ve… heard there are a lot of them.”

What a dork. “Of course! The best place to find the really cool shells are the tidepools, though. I think there should be some around here?” You twist in his arms, gesturing further up the beach.

He seems to take this as you wanting to be put down, and he blushes and apologizes as he lets you down. You pout a little, having enjoyed being carried, but you push that aside to grab his hand and lead him along, instructing him to keep an eye out for any shells.

There aren’t a whole lot of people out today, amazingly, but it lends itself to a more serene walk. The two of you talk quietly the whole time, occasionally exchanging jokes. When you get to the tidepools, separated from the beach by a wall of jagged jocks, Aster helps you over, keeping a stabilizing hand in yours and on your waist the whole time. He seems rather nervous of your bare feet on the rocks, and so at some point he simply picks you up again. You give a half-hearted complaint and warn him to be careful, but he brushes you off with a playful, teasing grin.

He’s stunned by the sheer amount of marine life in the tidepools. You tell him what you know about each creature and tidepools themselves, and he listens with rapt attention. He’s very careful when he handles the shells he finds, wary of disturbing any of the little creatures that could be living in them. You drift apart a little ways to search different pools, but you’re almost always within touching distance, so that you can exchange shells or see what little discoveries the other has found. Aster seems to have an affinity for the pale blue or pearly white shells, so you keep an eye out for those specifically. You also look out for any yellow shells, wanting to bring something back to G.

You notice that he seems to do the same with you, gauging which shells or creatures make you light up the most and looking for those. It’s incredibly sweet.

When you’ve finally collected enough to sate the curious skele, you head back down the beach. Aster insists on carrying you back over the rock, but as his arms are full he sets you back on his shoulders. You lean on his head, cradling your own haul with one arm while the other drapes around his neck. 

G is amazed to see all the shells you both bring back, nearly spitting out the mouthful of energy drink he’s nursing. He commends the two of you for your findings, helping you down from Aster’s shoulders. He blushes lightly when you show him the shells you found for him, ruffling your hair affectionately as he takes them from you. You and Aster exchange shells as well, both of you laughing awkwardly when you see that you’d gone shell-hunting for the other.

You set your shells carefully inside a bag you’d brought down from the RV, then tuck them into a bag off to the side. You sit down between the two, leaning on Aster as G settles himself across your lap. You idly run your hands over his skull, talking quietly amongst yourselves. 

It’s an unspoken agreement to wait for the sun to set, and when it does you go back to watching them contently. They stare at it with now-familiar looks of silent awe, creating a peaceful bubble around your trio. G stays awake just long enough to watch the sun set, but as soon as it’s gone, he drifts off, lulled by the soft conversations and your gentle ministrations. For a while, you and Aster simply talk about the day and the stars, curling closer as the temperature drops.

Eventually, you’ll head back into the RV, and maybe tomorrow you’ll explore town a little bit, but for now you simply lounge of the beach together, staring out at the moon at it hovers over the ocean. 


End file.
